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EAST RUTHERFORD. — Neymar gave Barcelona fans a dazzling reminder of what they could be about to lose on Saturday, scoring twice as the Spanish soccer giants defeated Juventus 2-1 in a pre-season friendly.
The 25-year-old Brazilian superstar is at the centre of frenzied speculation linking him to a gargantuan, world record 222-million-euro transfer to Paris Saint-Germain.
Neymar had kept the guessing game about his future bubbling away after posting a picture of himself looking pensive on Instagram on Friday.
But there was little to suggest that the charismatic striker is overwhelmed by the transfer saga as he produced a bewitching performance in front of a sell-out 82,104 crowd at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The Brazilian broke clear after only four minutes but saw a tame shot from near the edge of the area drift away from the goal.
Barcelona, with Lionel Messi starting, looked by far the more threatening of the two teams with Aleix Vidal and Messi both drawing early blocks from the Juventus defence.
At the other end Mario Mandzukic might have given Juve the lead on 14 minutes but his header from a Stefano Sturaro cross went wide.
The Italians were made to rue Mandzukic’s profligacy a minute later. — AFP.
Online Reporter
Bongani Ndlovu